RHS freshman wins concerto competition at Stony Brook University

A Riverhead High School freshman has won a concerto competition at Stony Brook University, earning her a performance as a soloist with the University Symphony Orchestra this spring.

Yasmine Kocan, 14, has only been playing cello for three and a half years. She had no experience with any other musical instruments before sixth grade, when she joined the Pulaski Street School orchestra and decided to start playing the cello.

“It came out of no where,” said Yasmine’s mother, Kathleen Kocan, of her daughter’s musical ability. “She started playing three years ago, and it’s just been skyrocketing ever since.”

Since she started playing, Yasmine has participated in both the Metropoloitan Youth Principal Orchestra and the East End Arts Music Masters Fellowship Program. Her performances have brought her to stages at Carnegie Hall and the Tilles Center for the Performing Arts.

During the 2014 Stony Brook Pre-College Concerto Competition, Yasmine was pitted against 15 other young musicians for the chance to perform a concerto with the Stony Brook University Symphony Orchestra. The competition is offered through the pre-college music program at Stony Brook, which Yasmine also attends, and auditions are open to any instrument or voice.

Yasmine came out on top of all of them – a considerable feat for a ninth grader.

“We’re so proud of her,” said Kathleen. “She works very hard at this. It really is her passion.”

Yasmine practices between two to four hours every day, according to her mother. She is the principal cellist in both the RHS ninth grade orchestra and the RHS Chamber Ensemble, which is audition-only and open to students in grades 9-12.

Because she won the competition at Stony Brook University, Yasmine will now have the opportunity to play a concerto with the Stony Brook University Symphony Orchestra, which is made up of select college musicians from around the world. In music, a concerto is a composition written for one solo instrument accompanied by a larger orchestra, which means that Yasmine will be featured throughout the entire piece.

She will be performing the first movement of the Elgar Cello Concerto in E minor, Opus 85. The concert will take place at the Staller Center of the Arts at Stony Brook University, March 3, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $5 each.

“It would be great if we could get members of the community to come support her,” said Kathleen. “She’s worked very hard for this.”

Photo courtesy of Kathleen Kocan.